The Stanford Center for Clinical and Translational Education and Research (SCCTER, pronounced ske-ter) is a multidisciplinary organizational unit whose mission is to transform and integrate critical components of clinical and translational research (CTR) across Stanford University's academic and clinical enterprise. The goals of the Center are to more effectively convert basic discoveries into practical methods that will improve human health and to better educate the next generation of research leaders to ensure that the translation of discoveries continues into the future. This mission will be accomplished through a series of coordinated and synergistic transformative changes in our educational and mentoring programs, institutional governance structure, research support infrastructure, and the professoriate, which are all intended to promote CTR at Stanford. These changes, elaborated in 12 separate program functions, each led by a senior investigator and educator, will emphasize three critical components of the research enterprise: innovation, education, and implementation. Our primary aims are: (1) to develop a fully integrated educational program stretching from high school to the junior faculty level that helps young biomedical research-oriented trainees obtain the knowledge and skills necessary to become successful CT researchers and leaders; (2) to build on the culture of innovation that pervades the entire University and ensure that it effectively underlies the foundation of all components of the CTR enterprise by providing pilot funding to prime the innovation pump and create novel programs that promote the translation of exciting ideas into drugs, devices, and diagnostics that improve health; and (3) aim to develop or improve the support services and/or structures that facilitate investigators across the enterprise to more efficiently and productively carry out CTR. The Stanford Center for Clinical and Translational Education and Research will provide the services, facilities and tools for medical scientists to develop new and improved ways to treat human disease and the home where the next generation of medical investigators are trained to deal with the future health needs of all people.